KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 18 — Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim says he will expose how threats and inducements are used against Pakatan Rakyat state assemblymen and members of parliament in his speech in parliament tomorrow.

Pakatan Rakyat leaders have been under ferocious pressure with talk of defections rife ever since three Perak state representatives switched their support from the fledging coalition earlier this month giving BN a lead in the state assembly and causing the ouster of Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaludin.

It is speculated that the proof that Anwar plans to present tomorrow will be related to the resignation of PKR’s Bukit Selambau state assemblyman V Arumugam on February 8. The resignation was allegedly due to pressure exerted by BN on Arumugam to defect.

Arumugam had lodged a police report on various threats he received but claims no police action was taken.

Apart from Kedah, BN is also rumoured to be on the prowl in Selangor where a PKR led Pakatan government holds an eight seat advantage over BN.

Last week, PKR’s Port Klang assemblyman Badrul Hashim Abdullah had to deny allegations that khalwat charges are being used against him in order to force a defection to BN.

Most recently, naked photographs of PKR’s Bukit Lanjan state representative Elizabeth Wong have been leaked to the media and Pakatan Rakyat has been quick to label the photos as BN’s attempt at gutter politics aimed at discrediting the Selangor state government with which Wong was a state executive councillor.

In a possibly related incident, a man named Ramlan Haji Abu Bakar who claims to be president of Gerakan Reformasi Rakyat Malaysia (Reformis) met with reporters in Parliament today and told them that he was issuing PKR vice president Azmin Ali with an ultimatum to meet him within five days or he would expose what he claims would be damaging secrets of the Selangor government.

In response, Azmin told reporters that he had been away performing his umrah in Mecca and then preoccupied with the political crisis in Perak which was the reason why he was not able to get in touch with the president of Reformis.

Azmin also told reporters that he installed a CCTV system in his house two days ago due to security concerns as his house was broken into four times within a year and both brake hoses in his car were recently cut. “When my house was broken into, it was not an ordinary burglary,” he says. “They wanted to put something into the house.”

On a separate topic, Azmin said that PKR would continue to defend embattled state representative Wong, and that all PKR members of parliament and state representatives would be meeting tonight to discuss the issue.

KUALA LUMPUR Feb 18 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has successfully brokered a deal between the warring factions of the Indian Progressive Front in a move which could help Barisan Nasional regain some Indian votes ahead of crucial by-elections in April.

Following a meeting between IPF leaders and Abdullah, the warring factions have agreed to call a ceasefire to internal bickering as the BN president dangled the carrot of a long sought after entry into the ruling coalition's fold.

IPF had for years benefited from the backing of Tamil working-class voters, much to the chagrin of MIC, which is supposed to represent the Indian voice in BN.

But infighting caused the IPF to lose its effectiveness as a BN-friendly party, with the Hindraf and Makkal Sakthi movement successfully championing the cause of the Indian underclass to revolt against BN parties at the ballot box.

Under the Abdullah brokered deal, free and fair party elections will be held either in June or July to allow "all IPF members" to elect a new leadership team.

All three faction leaders have agreed to the deal and have vowed to set aside their problems with each other to let the formula work.

An IPF leadership meeting has been called for tomorrow to endorse the deal and make preparations for the election.

All members, including the thousands who had been sacked or suspended over the years, are eligible to rejoin and contest for any post.

Abdullah also told the IPF leaders that he would appoint BN secretary-general Tengku Adnan Mansor to "supervise and oversee" the successful implementation of the formula.

At the meeting, Abdullah also told the factions that BN membership would be considered for IPF if the party can unite.

The meeting was attended by Puan Sri P. Jayashree, the widow of IPF founder, the late Tan Sri M. G. Pandithan, who claims now to be the legitimate president, K. Panjamurthi, chief of the breakaway IPF Bersatu faction, and suspended deputy president V. Senggutuan.

Vice-president M. Mathyalagan, who leads a fourth faction, was not present and IPF sources said he will have to join forces with one of the three factions and "come in" with them.

The meeting was also attended by senior aides of all faction leaders but they were not allowed to speak.

"We had a free-flowing discussion and Abdullah listened patiently and after everybody spoke the PM urged us to unite and be part of the BN political process," said an IPF member who attended the meeting.

"We are all very happy with the outcome and have all promised to set aside our differences and work together," the leader said.

"The June/July election will decide who leads the IPF. This outcome is really great. We all thanked the PM for it," the leader said.

IPF was founded in 1989 after MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu sacked Pandithan for alleged indiscipline.

It supported Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah's Gagasan Rakyat coalition in the 1990 general election when the opposition came within a whisker of unseating the Barisan Nasional.

After that the Gagasan broke up with Tengku Razaleigh and others returning to Umno, but Pandithan, while supporting BN, never gained admission for IPF because of opposition by Samy Vellu who had relied on the ruling coalition's principle that all component parties must unanimously agree to admit a new member.

Pandithan died in August 2008 after a long battle with cancer.

On his death Jayashree, helped by a lawyer, tried to "seize" control of the party and had herself appointed as acting president and later engineered to be "elected" president.

Her opponents went to court but the judged ruled he could not interfere in party matters because the Societies Act 1967 forbids it.

However last week the Registrar of Societies Datuk Alias Kalil intervened and declared the "election" of Jayashree as president void, setting the stage for Abdullah to intervene and call all factions to his office to broker a deal.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Tuba Sahaab looks nothing like a warrior. She is a slight girl of 11, living in a simple home in a suburb of Islamabad. But in Tuba's case, looks are deceiving.

With her pen, Tuba is taking on the swords of the Taliban. She crafts poems telling of the pain and suffering of children just like her; girls banned from school, their books

Tuba's parents say they are not afraid even as she speaks out so publicly against the Taliban.

With her pen, Tuba is taking on the swords of the Taliban. She crafts poems telling of the pain and suffering of children just like her; girls banned from school, their books burned, as the hard-core Islamic militants spread their reign of terror across parts of Pakistan.

A stanza of one of her poems reads: "Tiny drops of tears, their faces like angels, Washed with blood, they sleep forever with anger."

Tuba is not afraid to express her views. Of the Taliban forcing young girls out of the classroom, she says: "This is very shocking to hear that girls can't go to school, they are taking us back to the Stone Age."

Less than two hours from Tuba's home, the Taliban have control. The one-time holiday destination of the Swat Valley is now a no-go zone. Curfews are in place at all times. Militants kill with impunity.

Human rights activists and people on the ground in Swat Valley speak of a place called "slaughter square" where the Taliban leave the bodies of their victims with notes saying "do not remove for 24 hours." No one touches the corpses out of fear of reprisals.

Tuba Sahaab refuses to be silent. As young as she is, she is wise and brave beyond her years. The young school girl is reaching a bigger audience, regularly appearing in the media.

On the day we spend with her, Tuba and her mother appear on a talk radio program. Back home, she tells me how she would give her life for her country.

She prayed for his elections, she says. She sees in him the hope of peace in her own country. Tuba Sahaab has a dream to meet her hero. She can hardly contain her excitement.

"I want to go the White Palace and show him my poems, show him what is happening and ask him to come to Pakistan and control it because he is a super power."

Meeting and listening to Tuba Sahaab, it is easy to forget she is still a young girl.

In her playground at school, Tuba dances and laughs with her friends. She loves writing her short stories (she has already published one book) and shows me a cartoon character she has created called "Tomato Man."

Tuba's parents are proud of their daughter. They say they are not afraid even as she speaks out so publicly against the Taliban.

Tuba is their only child but as her mother tells me, she is "worth more than seven sons and seven daughters."

And Tuba has the dreams of any young child. She tells me she wants to be an astronaut and then one day lead her country.

"I will do anything, if my life goes I don't worry, I just want to do something." "I think you will get the chance," I say.

SHAH ALAM, Feb 18 – There is still a glimmer of hope for the political future of Elizabeth Wong, who offered to resign yesterday as state executive councillor and Bukit Lanjan assemblyman after semi-naked pictures of her were circulated to the press.

According to PKR insiders, the embattled Wong may be allowed to continue as Bukit Lanjan assemblyman but will relinquish her executive council position in the Selangor Government.

Given the wave of public support expressed for Wong and circulating in cyberspace, PKR leaders have no doubt that they will be able to retain the Bukit Lanjan seat if a by-election is called.

However the compromise will allow Pakatan Rakyat (PR) to avoid another costly by-election while salvaging Wong’s political career and pacifying her supporters within PKR.

“Our resources are limited and are already being stretched by the upcoming by-elections in Perak and Kedah.

“We can ill afford another in Selangor, despite our good chances of retaining the seat,” said the source.

Meanwhile Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim yesterday told The Malaysian Insider he was open to the idea of Wong only relinquishing her executive council position.

However Khalid said he would seek the advice of the Selangor Ruler and discuss the matter with the state executive council before making any decision.

“I accept her stand (to resign) but I will not make a decision at this point.”

Khalid said Wong was a victim but her willingness to resign from all posts is a selfless decision on her part to protect PKR because she is well aware that BN will continue to exploit the issue to damage the party.

“I sense the trauma she is going through which will leave an (emotional) scar on her, more so since she is a woman, and we need to understand what she is going through.”

However he added that he was confident that Wong had the fortitude to overcome the challenges.

Khalid said he hopes the culprits responsible for circulating the pictures of Wong and the politicians who are exploiting the issue are brought to task.

“Their character and intelligence is below the norms of sensible society.”

Khalid said politics was sometimes a dirty business but the politicians using the issues were compromising themselves and the generation they represent.

Nizar, represented by an eight-member legal team led by Sulaiman Abdullah, immediately moved to disqualify Perak State Legal Advisor Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid from acting as the lawyer for Zambry.

As expected, Sulaiman objected on the grounds that Zambry was sued in his personal capacity and not officially as the MB of Perak and had no right to use the state's resources, including its state legal advisor.

He added that Ahmad Kamal had no "locus" or standing to be the Zambry's counsel in the case.

Ahmad Kamal countered that Sulaiman's objection was "premature" as he had yet to receive an affidavit from Nizar supporting his claims.

The sitting judge in the Appellate and Special Powers division, Justice Mohamad Ariff Yusof, also confounded the court when he volunteered to step down from hearing the case on the basis he had acted as legal advisor and counsel to Pas, PKR and Barisan Nasional on several legal matters in the past before he became a judicial commissioner.

Ariff explained he felt the need to recuse himself to preserve the integrity of the judicial institution and maintain the impartiality of the court so that justice may be seen to be done, saying that the interest of the public was paramount.

"If you ask me, personally, I feel I should recuse myself," Ariff said, but added several other options the contending parties could take included taking the matter directly to the Federal Court "in the interest of speed and finality".

Ahmad Kamal supported Ariff's suggestion.

He explained that Zambry had given him instructions to ask the judge to recuse himself and to ask that the case be transferred or be heard at the Ipoh High Court on grounds that Zambry and Nizar both live there and the fact that the case involves the Perak government and holds interest to the people of Perak.

Sulaiman disagreed with Ariff's proposal to remove himself from overseeing the case. He also objected against the transfer to Ipoh, arguing the need for the case to be heard on "neutral territory and before a specialised court... dealing with judicial reviews".

He reminded Ariff that he had a duty to uphold justice and his suggestion to recuse himself could be seen as evading his duty.

Sulaiman added that Ariff's voluntary admission earlier proved that he would not be likely to be biased towards either Nizar or Zambry in this case.

Ariff postponed setting the date of mention to Feb 23.

He told the court he wants the views from the Attorney-General's Chambers first on his own suggestion to recuse himself; the idea to move the case straight to the Federal Court; and the contention over the legal standing of Ahmad Kamal in representing Zambry.

He said police had received two nude photographs, as well as a compact disc, of the 37-year-old politician from a Malay Mail journalist, Bernama reported today.

Police have already recorded statements from two Malay Mail journalists and two other journalists from theSun in connection with the case, he told reporters here.

He said police were now monitoring websites which posted the pictures.

He advised those in possession of the politician’s nude pictures to either destroy or hand them over to the police, adding that stern action would be taken against those found distributing the pictures.

On Tuesday, Wong offered to resign as an assemblyman and also Selangor executive councillor over the case.

In Parliament, dozens of reporters mobbed Petaling Jaya Selatan MP Hee Loy Sian as his former aide, Hilmi Malek, was said to be Wong’s ex-boyfriend and widely believed to have released the private photographs.

Hee did not say much and only revealed that Hilmi had worked for him after Election 2008 for about nine months and he was unware of his current whereabouts.

He urged the media to let police investigate the case but was cut short by PKR information chief Chua Tian Chang who told reporters to respect Wong’s privacy.

“Don’t harass Elizabeth Wong,” said the Batu MP who calls himself Tian Chua.

“BN wants the media to dig up her past. The media should not try to try this case. Let the police investigate,” he said, referring to the ruling federal coalition that had just toppled Pakatan Rakyat from the Perak

Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin making a call after leaving the Kuala Lumpur High Court, which has begun hearing the suit he brought against Datuk Zambry Abdul Kadir over the legitimacy of the Barisan Nasional state government in Perak. Nizar maintains he is still the menteri besar as he has not resigned. – Pic by Choo Choy May

Nizar, represented by an eight-member legal team led by Sulaiman Abdullah, immediately moved to disqualify Perak State Legal Advisor Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid from acting as the lawyer for Zambry.

As expected, Sulaiman objected on the grounds that Zambry was sued in his personal capacity and not officially as the MB of Perak and had no right to use the state's resources, including its state legal advisor.

He added that Ahmad Kamal had no "locus" or standing to be the Zambry's counsel in the case.

Ahmad Kamal countered that Sulaiman's objection was "premature" as he had yet to receive an affidavit from Nizar supporting his claims.

The sitting judge in the Appellate and Special Powers division, Justice Mohamad Ariff Yusof, also confounded the court when he volunteered to step down from hearing the case on the basis he had acted as legal advisor and counsel to Pas, PKR and Barisan Nasional on several legal matters in the past before he became a judicial commissioner.

Ariff explained he felt the need to recuse himself to preserve the integrity of the judicial institution and maintain the impartiality of the court so that justice may be seen to be done, saying that the interest of the public was paramount.

"If you ask me, personally, I feel I should recuse myself," Ariff said, but added several other options the contending parties could take included taking the matter directly to the Federal Court "in the interest of speed and finality".

Ahmad Kamal supported Ariff's suggestion.

He explained that Zambry had given him instructions to ask the judge to recuse himself and to ask that the case be transferred or be heard at the Ipoh High Court on grounds that Zambry and Nizar both live there and the fact that the case involves the Perak government and holds interest to the people of Perak.

Sulaiman disagreed with Ariff's proposal to remove himself from overseeing the case. He also objected against the transfer to Ipoh, arguing the need for the case to be heard on "neutral territory and before a specialised court... dealing with judicial reviews".

He reminded Ariff that he had a duty to uphold justice and his suggestion to recuse himself could be seen as evading his duty.

Sulaiman added that Ariff's voluntary admission earlier proved that he would not be likely to be biased towards either Nizar or Zambry in this case.

Ariff postponed setting the date of mention to Feb 23.

He told the court he wants the views from the Attorney-General's Chambers first on his own suggestion to recuse himself; the idea to move the case straight to the Federal Court; and the contention over the legal standing of Ahmad Kamal in representing Zambry. -The Malaysian Insider

UPDATED 2.30PM: Let’s take a quick look at Puncak Niaga, one of the main water concessionaires in Selangor.

You can see that the firm is making huge profits. (Profits for 2006 were higher as there was a gain arising from the partial disposal of a subsidiary of RM206m in 2006.)

The group had close to a billion ringgit in deposits, cash, and bank balances as at 31 December 2007 and a net current asset ratio of 1.2. In other words, very liquid.

Syabas, which is 70 per cent owned by Puncak Niaga, received a government grant of RM250 million (that’s our money) “solely for the purpose of financing the costs and expenditure of the non-revenue water” to reduce unaccountable water loss.

The federal government also provided a support loan (current carrying amount close to RM80 million) to finance construction of the Wangsa Maju water treatment plant. It was originally repayable over 20 years (from 1999) at 8 per cent interest rate. But in 2004, the federal government “restructured” the loan: the interest rate was reduced to 3 per cent per annum retrospectively and the repayment schedule revised. How thoughtful.

Having made super profits with the help of public money, Puncak Niaga is now asking for a higher price than what the Selangor government is prepared to pay (RM1.6 billion for Puncak Niaga and RM1.5 billion for Syabas) to nationalise water assets in the state.

The total offer price of RM3.1 billion in total is based on the valuation of the water assets using book value (without any liabilities being assumed) as at 31 December 2007:

Puncak Niaga

Asset Value : RM1,140,000,000

Equity Value : RM 543,047,000

Total: RM 1,683,047,000

Less: Dividend (RM 75,330,000)

Offer Price for Puncak Niaga : RM1,607,717,000

Syabas:

Asset Value : RM1,088,000,000

Equity Value : RM 424,004,000

Total: RM1,512,004,000

Less : Dividend : (Nil)

Offer Price for Syabas : RM1,512,004,000

(Source: Puncak Niaga’s general announcement to Bursa of the letter of offer from Selangor state government dated 13 February. Deadline for acceptance of offer is 20 February.)

For the record, these are the directors of Puncak Niaga (during the financial year 2007):

Tan Sri Rozali bin Ismail

Dato’ Matlasa bin Hitam

Dato’ Ruslan bin Hassan

Dato’ Ir Lee Miang Koi

Dato’ Syed Danial bin Syed Ariffin

Tan Sri Dato’ Hari Narayanan a/l Govindasamy

Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Ting Chew Peh

Datuk Dr Rahman bin Ismail

Tan Seng Lee

Tengku Dato’ Rahimah binti Almarhum Sultan Mahmud *

* This Director had been redesignated to Non-Independent Non-Executive Director with effect from 1 January 2007.

The firm paid out close to RM11 million in directors’ remuneration in 2007.

According to the Annual Report 2007, these are the number of directors whose total remuneration for 2007 fell within the following bands:

RM1 to RM100,000 - 1

RM100,001 to RM200,000 - 2

RM200,001 to RM300,000 - 1

RM500,001 to RM600,000 - 0

RM600,001 to RM700,000 - 1

RM800,001 to RM900,000 - 0

RM900,001 to RM1,000,000 - 2

RM1,000,001 to RM1,100,000 – 0

RM1,100,001 to RM1,200,000 – 0

RM1,200,001 to RM1,300,000 - 1

RM1,300,001 to RM1,400,000 - 1

RM4,500,001 to RM4,600,000 – 0

RM5,100,001 to RM5,200,000 - 1

Total directors’ remuneration rose 17 per cent from RM9.2 million in 2006 to RM10.8 million for 2007. In 2006, only one director received more than RM1.2 million and no one received more than RM4.6 million. But in 2007, three directors received more than RM1.2 million, including one director who received more than RM5.1 million.

Gamuda also has an interest in water in Selangor.

These firms are rolling in profits - and yet, there could be a 30 per cent water tariff hike in Selangor from April!-Anilnetto

PENANG, Feb 18 (Bernama) -- Even 11 months after the tumultuous 12th general election, the dust has not settled in the local political scenario.

With the Bukit Gantang parliamentary and Bukit Selambau state by-elections to be held simultaneously on April 7, political parties will hit the campaign trail again, barely a month after the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary by-election.

Political pundits believed that the by-elections would gauge the people's acceptance of the leadership of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak as he would have already took over the reins from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi by then.

It would be an acid test for Najib whether he would be able to get Umno leaders and members to close ranks after party elections at its general assembly from March 24 to 28.

The by-elections will also be a test for the incoming Umno deputy president and deputy prime minister as in previous by-elections, the deputy prime minister took charge of the campaigning.

Universiti Sains Malaysia Social Science Studies senior lecturer Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said the Umno leadership transition in March would lead to changes in the party, which would have a bearing on the people's support for the party.

"Najib faces a daunting task of uniting Umno members, who would still feel the bruises of party elections.

"Umno has to ensure that the losers will not sabotage the by-elections," he said, adding that Umno's debacle in the last general election and subsequent by-elections was not because it had weakened or that the opposition had gained the upperhands, but because of sabotage.

For the opposition, it had alleged that the Election Commission (EC) sided with the Barisan Nasional (BN) by holding the by-elections simultaneously, with the nomination day on March 29, a day after the Umno General Assembly.

The EC refuted PAS Youth chief Salahuddin Ayub's insinuation that the date was chosen to please the BN, especially Umno, to ensure that the party's general assembly went unhindered.

On the contrary, Sivamurugan said PAS should look at the date positively as it would give the opposition an advantage over Umno, which would be busy with the tussle for top posts in the Supreme Council and its wings.

"Besides Umno, MIC will also be having its elections for top posts including the presidency in March.

"Umno and MIC need to divide its time between the by-elections and party elections whereas the opposition can concentrate on the by-elections," he said.

Sivamurugan said the opposition had the tendency of being selective in its attitude towards decisions made by the authorities.

"We should not be selective in our attitude by objecting certain things which don't work our way. The opposition is populist in nature as it strives to win sympathy votes," he said.

On Perak politics, he said the opposition felt that the sentiment at the grassroots at the moment was in its favour but was worried that it would no longer be the case in the next general election.

On the other hand, BN is ready for the crunch as echoed by Umno vice-president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin that party elections would not be a stumbling block in the coalition's preparation for the by-elections.

"We have enough machinery and manpower at the divisional and branch levels. This is not a problem for us," said Muhyiddin, who is vying for Umno deputy-presidency.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 17 — Federal Territory Gerakan secretary Dr Wong Ruen Yuan today lodged a police report against an unknown caller who tried to extort RM500,000 as ransom, claiming that he had kidnapped his 10-year-old daughter from her school in Brickfields.

According to Dr Wong who made the police report at the Jalan Travers Police station, his mother-in-law who was in Melaka, had received a phone call from an unknown person at 12.30pm yesterday, asking her to pay RM500,000 as ransom.

“The unknown caller had claimed that my daughter had been kidnapped from her school in Brickfields. My mother-in-law called me to inform me of the call and I quickly went to my daughter’s school and found her safe there,” Dr Wong told reporters here today.

Dr Wong said it was an attempt by someone to dupe him into paying the ransom and made the police report at 5.15pm yesterday.

“My safety and that of my family seems to be under threat. I cannot understand how they were able to source my background and information, including my mother-in-laws phone number in Melaka,” he said. — Bernama

While condemning the distribution the pictures as violating a woman’s privacy, they also called on the authorities to promptly investigate and resolve the matter.

Wanita Gerakan chief Datuk Tan Lian Hoe said the police must quickly and thoroughly investigate the matter and to bring to book “the culprit or culprits behind this irresponsible act that has violated her privacy”.

“The decisive action by the police will deter future incidents and protect all Malaysians, especially women, from such an invasion of their privacy,” she said in a statement here, today.

Tan also said that Wong needed not resign, and cautioned all women to be careful and be constantly vigilant against unscrupulous people who would stop at nothing to smear the image of any individual.

Federal Territory Gerakan legal bureau head Datuk Baljit Singh Sidhu said the distribution of the nude and partially nude photographs of Wong must be strongly condemned as it caused embarrassment of the highest order to a lady.

“Immediately after this so called ‘scandal’ broke out, there were comments by certain quarters questioning Wong’s decency and calling for her resignation, notwithstanding the circumstances leading to the snapping of these photographs.

“We urge all parties to refrain from making any suggestion to futher demoralise and victimise Wong and causing her career downfall until the final investigation is completed or some other evidence surface thereafter,” she said.

Baljit urged the authority to take punitive action against those responsible.

Wanita Parti Keadilan Rakyat chief Zuraida Kamaruddin demanded “a just and thorough investigation” and called on the authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.

“The gross violation of basic human right and privacy of politicians or any mmber of the society is not part of a culture that values good morality,” she aid.

Meanwhile, several student associations, including the Malaysian graduates olidarity, Malaysian youth and student democratic movement and the University Malaya Islamic students association also condemned the distribution of the nude pictures.

Wong, 37, who is Selangor executive councillor in charge of tourism, consumer affairs and environment, has offered to resign the post and as Bukit Lanjan assemblyman. — Bernama

IPOH, Feb 17 — The Perak assembly speaker V Sivakumar has asked Menteri Besar Datuk Zambry Abdul Kadir and two journalists to appear before the Committee of Special Privileges tomorrow.

Zambry showed up at the speaker's office today, and met Sivakumar for 20 minutes —presumably to talk about the committee hearing.

When leaving the BN leader refused to comment on their discussion, on whether it was related to a newspaper report or the proceeding tomorrow.

He only disclosed that he showed up today as a courtesy, and added that his position on the matter will be known tomorrow.

The Committee of Special Privileges presently is made of by five from Pakatan Rakyat and one from Barisan Nasional, with Sivakumar as chairman.

Sivakumar explained later that Zambry and the journalists from Sin Chew Daily were called to gain further information to a report which appeared in local dailies on Sunday, regarding his behaviour as state assembly speaker.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 18 — With less than two months before the departure of Prime Minister and Umno president Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi, his son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin said Tuesday night the transition of power to Datuk Seri Najib Razak scheduled for early April must be followed by promised reforms.

His opponents in the race for the coveted Umno Youth chief position, Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir and Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo, also spoke on the need for reforms to Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) in a nationally televised debate Tuesday night.

But all three contenders agreed that the country's affirmative action policies favouring the Malays would have to be continued because they felt the community was still lagging behind economically.

“Do not think that the transition of power will solve everything. The transition is just like laying the foundation. Without reform, the transition will be meaningless,” said Khairy.

The Rembau MP was responding to a question from the host, Dr Agus Yusof on the reason why Umno performed badly in the general election last year, to which Khairy replied that the Malay nationalist party still managed to retain most of its support base.

The three candidates were subjected to a series of tough questions including one on which they were asked to comment on Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's Ketuanan Rakyat slogan.

“I am concerned that this Ketuanan Rakyat means Malays and other races, Islam and other religions will be placed on a level footing. The fact is Malays have a special position while Islam is the constitutional religion,” Dr Mohd Khir said, in what appeared to be an attempt to appeal to the more conservative Malay ground.

“The social contract is not unfair. I challenge those who do not agree to get into Parliament and change the Constitution then.”

Khairy said Umno's failure to maintain the support level it enjoyed in the 2004 election was because the party has failed to deliver on the promises of change it had made.

“We must return to the message of hope in 2004. In 2008 we failed because we failed to manage our biggest victory ever,” said Khairy.

Mukhriz promised to emulate the leadership qualities of his father Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who ruled Malaysia for 22 years, while Khir said Umno needs to return to the foundation which it was formed which is defending the Malay rights and Islam.

The Selangor Opposition Leader attributed the party's poor performance in the last election to its failuare to defend Islam and the Malays.

“When we are seen not to be fighting for religion, those who are religious would support Pas,” said Khir.

He added that the scheduled transition must emulate the similar hand over of power that took place after 1969 when the then Alliance lost its two-thirds majority in the Parliament.

“The renewal led to Pas joining the Barisan Nasional,” said Khir.

Both Mukhriz and Khir also expressed their disappointment at the government for not invoking the Internal Security Act when dealing with street protestors.

The Jerlun MP said the high number of protests led to BN losing the two by-elections.

Khir said that ISA would stop the proliferation of street protest.

“In the case of Karpal Singh, where more than 100 reports have been lodged, but no action has been taken. This is the root of people's disappointment leading to street demonstration,” said Khir referring to the treason allegation against the DAP chairman.

As someone who has known Ms Elizabeth Wong, former ADUN and Exco member of the Selangor state government, for almost ten years, I am profoundly distressed by the treatment that has been meted out to her by the mainstream and tabloid press over the revelation of photos that have compromised her. There are no words adequate enough to describe my feelings of disgust and anger over how this capable and committed activist-politician has been slandered and abused recently.

The facts surrounding the case are well known by now and one need not dwell upon them here. Suffice to say that one of the brightest, capable and efficient politicians of our land has been discredited via a malicious campaign to tarnish her reputation, that reeks of hypocrisy and conspiracy of the highest order.

What needs to be emphasised in the midst of this media hullabaloo is this: That the private lives of politicians are as sacrosanct as the right of any other citizen, and that politicians deserve the same degree of respect as anyone else. This is what we are fighting for; and this is what the elections of March 2008 were all about: Our earnest wish to see a new kind of politics in Malaysia, a new politics that would reflect and mirror the new Malaysian society that we live in today.

The ascendancy of Ms Wong and a host of other younger politicians who were elected to office last March signalled – in the clearest terms – the desire for change and reform. Malaysians of all creeds, races and gender have demonstrated that we are sick and tired of the old mode of neo-feudal communitarian politics which has hitherto been propped up by nothing more than an assembly of tired and outdated clichés. We yearn for a new Malaysia that is colour-blind, anti-racist, anti-sexist, democratic, tolerant and plural. We yearn for a new generation of professional politicians who can do their job well in the spirit of accountability and transparency. We yearn, in short, for a new political culture altogether.

Ms. Wong’s election to office demonstrated that a significant section of her constituents had faith in her abilities to translate those ideals into reality and political praxis. They voted her into power because they believed that this was a woman who would stand by the rights of all her constituents; who would further a politics of inclusivity and non-communitarianism, and that she would also foreground the needs and concerns of women as well. The proof of this is evident to all who have followed her career that has now been tragically cut short: as an advocate for gender equality, her presence in the state assembly of Selangor has ensured that the sexist culture that was so prevalent in the past ceased to continue. During the Bukit Antarabangsa landslide tragedy she was one of the few politicians who was seen present at the ground-level doing relief work while some other politicians merely procrastinated and pontificated while doing nothing.

The unfortunate turn of events that has led to her resignation has therefore robbed us – the Malaysian public – of one of the few capable elected representatives that we could count on; and the loss is that of the Malaysian public’s as much as it is hers.

Today as Malaysia heads into a recession under the febrile leadership of old politicians who remain in a state of denial, we are in need of a younger generation of elected representatives whose political orientation and political culture are different: Elizabeth did not lead, she represented. And she gave a voice to the voiceless who clamoured for attention on her behalf. Her passing out of political life – which I personally hope will be temporary – has been a blow to our common struggle for a better, newer Malaysia. It is my earnest wish that despite the setbacks she has suffered, Elizabeth Wong will continue in the struggle for a better and newer Malaysia in whatever capacity that she can.

This struggle for a new Malaysia and a new Malaysian politics is our common struggle, the struggle of the new generation of Malaysians today. One of us among our ranks has been attacked and fallen. We owe it to her as a friend and comrade to support her now, and to remain focused on the pressing need to reform the old order of our authoritarian, racist, communitarian past and its attendant institutions.

SUNGAI PETANI, Feb 17 (Bernama) -- The individual who sponsored V.Arumugam in the March general election last year has denied that the resignation of the Bukit Selambau State Assemblyman was due to threats by certain quarters, particularly the Barisan Nasional (BN).

Zamil Ibrahim, who was also a former Kedah Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Youth chief, claimed that Arumugam had never been offered any reward to resign, on the contrary, he did so because of other reasons.

"After being appointed a member of the (State) Exco for a month, Arumugam complained that he was feeling uncomfortable and was being 'sidelined' by the state government. So, I advised him to leave the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and that's why he resigned.

"He (Arumugam) told me all his problems because I was responsible for fully sponsoring his expenses in terms of the candidate's deposit, campaign cost and preparing his candidacy forms in the last general election," he said when met here on Tuesday.

Zamil, who was also the former Merbok PKR director for strategy, had full power over Arumugam and could ask him to resign at any time, he had never offered Arumugam any payment to do so.

He claimed that the decision to sponsor Arumugam was made privately after PKR advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had chosen a candidate, Saiful Izham Ramli, who was not agreeable to the PKR Merbok, and his candidacy was rejected by the Election Commission (EC) for failing to submit his budget for the 2004 general election.

In the general election on March 8 last year, Arumugam, who contested as an Independent before joining PKR, defeated the BN candidate from MIC, S. Krishnan with a majority of 2,362 votes.

However, he gave up the seat after receiving threats from various quarters, including a RM5 million offer purportedly from an individual representing the BN to switch party.

Arumugam had sent a letter, through a representative, vacating his State Assembly seat and resigning as a State Executive Councillor on Feb 8.

0044: Revised estimate of crowd size is 3,500-4,000, according to organisers, who say there were 2,500 inside the hall and the rest outside - difficult to estimate accurately as lots of people going in and out during the ceramah. A couple of you, however, are saying the turnout was just 1,000.

2220: The crowd has now swelled to 6,000, according to organisers.

2100: Some 3,000 people have turned up at the Dewan Hamzah, MPK in Klang tonight for a Pakatan ceramah on the crisis in Perak. Among the speakers are Khalid Samad and Charles Santiago.

"Wayang Kulit" of Ministry of Foreign Affairs & AG at the UPR in GenevaI attendedas an observer at the recent concluded Universal Periodic Review on Malaysia in Geneva on the 11th February 2009.

The ultimate aim of this UPR mechanism is to improve the human rights situation in all UN member countries, address human rights violations wherever they occur and indicate the actions that have been taken to improve human rights situation but the Malaysian session turnout to be a gloated congratulatory event by the NAM and OIC countries on the righteousness and success in protecting human rights by the UMNO led Malaysian government.

The report submitted by the Malaysian delegate was a mockery so were the “crony” countriesto a large extend who failed to question objectively on the human right violations and uphold the aim of the UPR mechanism save for a few countries.

Every member states if they had read the summary prepared by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Right for the UPR review recognizes that Malaysia have not ratified most of the major international human rights instruments, that there has been major Human Right violations and Suhakam is practically toothless and hardly an independent body to oversee the human right violations in Malaysia.

If only the member states had actually read the summary, then many objective questions on the human right violations could be raised and only if the Malaysian delegate acknowledges the human rights violations that are widespread and propose actions that are being taken to minimize these violations to actually serve the very purpose of the UPR.

In any event, in recap of the AG's, who had answered to some of the questions raised by the concerned states such as Article 11 which provides for freedom of religion and the demolition of the temple that was necessitated by the law of the country is rather dumfounding, absurd and clear indication of discrimination, marginalization of the ethnic minority in Malaysia and a derailed justice system.

The demolition of such temples such as the over 100-year old Sri Maha Mariaman Hindu temple (Shah Alam), the Sri Maha Periyachi Amman Hindu temple (Malacca) and the Sri Kaliaman Hindu temple (Shah Alam) demolished in 2007 could not have been necessitated by law as such national land code, building plan laws and relevant land ordinance were not in existence during that time.

In Malaysia, the National Heritage Act 2005 is an Act to provide for the conservation and preservation of National Heritage, natural heritage, tangible and intangible cultural heritage ie aesthetic, archaeological, architectural, cultural, historical, and scientific. Doesn't a temple over 100 years qualify under this act, or is it only selective for a particular ethnicity in a multicultural society?

In another round of answer, the “learned” Attorney General failed to address the independence of the judiciary and arbitrary detention on the issue of the prisoners of conscience ie the HINDRAF 5 but rather how RPK was released after being detained under the ISA to show the independence of the judiciary but then why is the government now appealing which is again a total abuse against the concept of the rule of law and basic commitment to human rights and the independence of the judiciary by the UMNO led government.

On the torture of Prabakaran and murder of A. Kugan, he claims that Malaysia does not condone to any torture. What happened to over the 1,000 Indians who were murdered in custody or shot dead over the years? Has there been any conviction against the police personnel for those who had been murdered so far? If only not for the brave HINDRAF heroes who barged into the mortuary, alternative media and public pressure, the cases of Prabkaran and A. Kugan would had been swept under the carpet just like the rest of them. What action had the government taken other than to investigate so far on Kugan's murder that took place in custody although over three weeks had past and no arrest has been forthcoming simply because the culprits are members of the Royal Police Force

On freedom of assembly, expression and religion, he claims everything is done in accordance to the Constitution. How do one justify the arrest and charge against peaceful protesters such as HINDRAF, BERSIH, JERIT and the abolish ISA vigils that had taken place as oppose to inciting and provoking racial protest that are orchestrated and conducted by the UMNO let fascist government?.

Such blatant lies and condescending replies by the Attorney General at the august International Forum only reflects the dire state the nation faces through imposition of fear and intimidation against the will of the public in seeking and living within the sphere of the constitution.

The present glorified Malaysian government definitely does not deserve to be in the Human Right Council with its atrocious track record on human right violations. All the NGOs and importantly the Malaysian People Power need to increase their tempo and act in questioning and addressing issues that concerns the society irrespective of the race, religion, color or following for us to move forward in Malaysia.